Ambition and Loyalty
by Caitie Riddle
Summary: A Hufflepuff and a Slytherin


1st year

Clarissa was walking down the halls of Hogwarts. The welcoming feast was a month ago. She was sorted into Slytherin.

She learned pretty quickly that there was a stigma on her new house. Every Slytherin was seen as selfish and evil. She thought it was a load of codswallop, but the insults and blatant disdain hurt. It was like she was predestined to be evil and the students treated her accordingly.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a first-year Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff. The Ravenclaw had the Hufflepuff backed up against the wall. The Hufflepuff, a little girl with blonde hair and brown eyes, had tears streaming down their face.

Clarissa quickly intervened, she walked up to the Ravenclaw and told him that Professor Flitwick was looking for him.

As the Ravenclaw walked away, Clarissa kneeled next to the Hufflepuff who had slid to the floor.

"Hey are you ok?" Asked Clarissa.

She didn't answer her, but nodded and looked at Clarissa with teary eyes.

"Thank you." She said.

Clarissa smiled slightly.

"My name's Clarissa." She said, holding out her hand for the Hufflepuff to shake.

"Melanie." She said, shaking the outstretched hand.

2nd year

"Clarissa what are we doing?" Hissed Melanie.

The two were currently sneaking down a corridor in the middle of the night.

"Just trust me." She said as they reached the end of the hall.

There was a large painting of a bowl of fruit. Clarissa reached out towards the painting and tickled the green pear. The thing giggled and the painting swung open. When they went inside, they saw a bustling kitchen full of house elves.

Clarissa lead her friend over to an elderly looking house elf.

"Daisy, could you make us some cookies?" Said Clarissa.

The house elf looked at her, and with child like enthusiasm replied.

"Of course Missus. Daisy will make them right away!"

The elderly house elf sprites away to make the cookies.

Clarissa lead Melanie to a small table to the side of the kitchen.

"How in the world did you find this place?" Melanie asked in amazement as she sat down.

"It was rather easy." Clarissa explained. "The twins found it and I overheard them telling Lee Jordan."

"Here you goes Missus." Said Daisy as she placed the steaming plate of cookies in the center of the table.

Melanie quickly grabbed a cookie and took a huge bite. Clarissa also took one, albeit a bit slower and gracefully then her.

Melanie's eyes widened.

"This is the best thing I have ever placed in my mouth." She said as she took another cookie.

Clarissa just laughed.

"Wait." Melanie said. "How did she make these so quickly?"

Clarissa smirked and wiggling her fingers at her she said.

"Magic."

3rd year

"Psst. Melanie?"

Melanie rubbed her eyes as she groggily sat up in her bed in the Hufflepuff dormitory.

"Clarissa? How'd you get in here?"

"Pft." She scoffed. "I'm a Slytherin." She said. "Now move over."

Perplexed, Melanie made room on the bed for her friend. She slid under the covers and made herself comfortable.

"Sirius Black broke into the castle." Said Clarissa.

Melanie's eyes widened and her heart quickened.

Clarissa, seeing he friend panicking, assured her that Black wasn't in the castle anymore.

Sighing in relief, Melanie tried to go back to sleep until she thought of something.

"What are you going to do when my dorm mates see you in the morning?"

Clarissa smirked and answered with her eyes closed.

"They won't ever know I was here."

True to her word, in the morning Melanie woke up alone in her bed. There wasn't anything to indicate that a Slytherin had snuck into the dormitory.

4th year

"A. Ferret." Clarissa said. It was hard to understand her because she was laughing and wheezing too hard.

"Yep." Said Melanie.

They were in the Slytherin common room sharing funny stories. The rest of the school was at the Black Lake watching the second task. Melanie and Clarissa had left as soon as they realized that they wouldn't be able to actually watch when the task was taking place underwater.

"Then moody levitated him and shoved him down his goon's trousers!" Said Melanie, giggling.

Though it should have been impossible, Clarissa was laughing even louder.

Melanie smiled, but they both froze when they heard the doers to the common room open.

Clarissa recognized the voice as an annoying sixth year prefect. Other houses weren't allowed into the Slytherin common room.

"Quick! Take off your robe and tie!" Clarissa hissed as she quickly took off her robe and tie and threw them to her. She left Melanie and went to go stall the prefect.

When the prefect got into the common room he barely glanced at Melanie in the Slytherin robes and tie before walking into his dormitory followed by his posse.

As soon as he left, the two girls sighed in relief.

"That was close." Breathed out Clarissa.

The two locked eyes and burst out laughing.

5th year

Melanie was walking towards the Room of Requirement when someone pulled her into a small, dark alcove.

"Clarissa?" Melanie inquired.

"Yeah it's me." She whispered.

Melanie took her in. Clarissa's black hair was pulled into a bun and the small amount of light glinted off her inquisitorial squad badge.

"They changed the patrol schedule. The squad is patrolling the seventh floor corridor at five o'clock tomorrow."

"Thank you." Said Melanie.

Clarissa was risking a lot when she agreed to gather inside information to prevent the discovery of Dumbledore's Army. No one but Melanie knew that their inside information came from Clarissa.

Clarissa nodded.

"Good luck." She said before exiting the alcove and disappearing around the corner.

6th year

Clarissa paced around the broom cupboard and checked her watch for the what felt like the fiftieth time.

Dumbledore's funeral was starting soon and it looked like she would miss it.

She kicked the door in frustration then immediately regretted it as she hopped around on one foot and held the other in pain.

A group of Gryffindors had locked her in as she was walking towards the great hall. They thought that just because she was a Slytherin that she didn't deserve to pay her respects towards their late headmaster.

Suddenly the door opened to reveal her friend Melanie.

"Clarissa! What are you doing here?"

Clarissa shot out of the cupboard as fast as she could before she answered her friend.

"A bunch of Gryffindors locked me in there so I'd miss the funeral."

Clarissa had never seen a Hufflepuff angry before, and now she was kind of relieved. Melanie looked murderous.

"Who?" She asked. Her voice sent shivers down Clarissa's spin.

"Hmmmm."

The smile on her face made Clarissa feel a little sorry for whatever fate she bestowed on those Gryffindors.

She thought of the way the grabbed her and threw her in the cupboard before magically locking the door.

Funny. She didn't feel very sorry anymore.

7th year

The chaos of battle threatened to overwhelm the Slytherin as she shot spell after spell at the death eaters attacking Hogwarts.

She didn't fight fair. She shot the death eaters in the back and when they were distracted. Her spells were deadly. Clarissa felt sad for the life these people could have lived, but she held no remorse for their deaths.

Out of the corner of her eye she spotted a student dueling a masked death eater and losing.

She quickly shot a cutting hex at their back. They'd bleed out in seconds.

"Crucio!"

Clarissa turned around, prepared to hold off an attack, but what she saw instead was entirely unexpected.

There was a masked man writhing on the ground under the pain of the cruciatus curse. There was her best friend Melanie, torturing the death eater who was about to curse her.

"Melanie?!"

Melanie finally looked at her.

"I know what Harry meant about having to mean it now." She said grimly.

Clarissa grimaced before she saw something over Melanie's shoulder.

"Duck!"

Without any hesitation, Melanie ducked and Clarissa shot a bludgeoning curse at the death eater.

Together the two girls fought back to back through the battle. Afterwards when people were getting patched up in the great hall, Melanie and Clarissa sat side by side as the Hufflepuff was having the burn on her arm looked at.

They ignored the strange stares they were getting and reminisced that moment when those two eleven year olds met all those years ago.


End file.
